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Replies to: The Importance of a Good Essay

No matter what people say, a good set of essays can take you almost anywhere. Take note that I made essays plural, rather than singular. Most people emphasize the importance of the common app. essay, but the personal statements are just as, if not more, significant in the process. This is something you'll find to be true not only through admission decisions, but also as you write your applications. If you can write a very eloquent essay filled with lots of reasons for the "why us?" question, then your reasons for wanting to go should carry you through. However, if you're struggling for an answer and you try to B.S. your essay, the admissions officers will be able to tell. You're guarantied a rejection if you B.S. your essay, and admission is a pretty safe bet if you can argue your case effectively.

I can further evidence this by one experience I had when I first applied to colleges. There were three reach schools to which I applied. One of them had the lousiest series of supplemental essays I have ever written. Another one had an okay essay with superficial reasons for attending the college. My last one had strong reasons that were similar to those based around my decision to go private school. For all of them, I submitted a common app essay about turning my life around when endless surgeries to fix a disability failed. Needless to say, I was rejected from the first two. The third one took me and send me a congratulatory note that praised my strength when grappling with my illness. Later on, an admissions officer told me that this was why I was one of the first students admitted into the class.

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